Seasons of Love
by Elephantian
Summary: Mark somehow finds himself caring for his younger sister, who's quite a handful. Along with that, he's run into an artist...literally. Mark loves his sister, but he also loves his friends, both new and old. Can he find time to balance both?
1. Chapter 1

It was fall, and the vibrant red hues of the leaves matched the shade of Roger's cheeks. It was the third time **_today_** that he was going out with Mimi, and I was tired of it.

"Roger, you are spending a little to much time with Mimi," I said sternly, shaking my finger in his face a bit, "Which is resulting in YOU ignoring ME!"

"Chill out Mark," he whispered, blushing at my concern, "You're not my mother."

I laughed, breaking the tension that had been building up over the past few minutes. "I just miss you around here Roger."

"Come here buddy!" he said dangerously soft. Before I could make a noise, Roger had me in a headlock and was giving me a noogie. You know, when you rub a person's head real hard?

Suddenly, a sharp knock sounded on the door. Still laughing, Roger let me go and said, "That'll probably be Mimi!" Happily, he opened the door, but his smile dropped when he saw a little girl standing there.

"Morgan?" I whispered, not trusting my eyes. It _couldn't_ be her…

My thoughts were interrupted when Roger asked rudely, "Who the hell are you?"

The girl smiled slightly. "And may I ask," she said mischievously, "Who the hell YOU are?"

Roger looked stunned and all I could do was laugh. It was her alright; there was no doubt in my mind now. "Morgan, long time no see!" I said, giving her a big hug, "What did you do now?"

Morgan laughed and was about to speak, but Roger interrupted her. "I still have no idea WHO THE HELL THIS IS!" he yelled angrily.

"Roger, Roger, Roger," she said, shaking her head sadly, "Whatever shall we do with you? Don't I look ANYTHING like my big brother, or are you just that blind?"

Roger laughed. "So _this_ is the famous Morgan Mark has been telling me about. I thought you were just a legend. Nice to finally meet you in the flesh!"

"Yes, well. Mark, back to your question! I, well, I set the school on fire."

"Again!" I asked disappointedly and Roger gave me a quizzical look.

"It was math, Mark, MATH! I HATE math," she said, laughing a bit, but then her smile faded and she turned to me solemnly, "But that isn't why I'm here."

I inhaled deeply and looked square at my little sister. At fourteen she had more life in her than I would ever have. She was a handful, but I didn't mind putting up with her. I'd never seen her without a smile, and my heart began to pick up pace. "What happened Morgan?" I asked meekly.

She looked up at me with tear-filled, green eyes. "Mark," she whispered, "Mom and Dad are dead."

I sat down abruptly on the hard floor, my head spinning. But the news continued. "The funeral is this weekend. And, um, Mark, you're my legal guardian."

"Me?" I asked, looking up at her to see if she was playing some kind of joke on me, as she often did.

She nodded solemnly, pulling a paper out of her back pocket.

"Great." I mumbled. I barely had enough money to feed myself, not to mention my little sister! I sighed and pulled a blanket and a couple of pillows out of the closet. "You don't mind sleeping on the couch do you?" I asked, trying to keep from looking into her teary eyes.

"Mom and Dad are dead. Are you getting that?" She asked, tears spilling from her green eyes.

"Yeah, but being sad isn't going to take care of you now is it? Where did Roger go?" I looked around the room; Roger was nowhere to be found.

"I think he went with that slut downstairs." Morgan said, looking though the door.

"Mimi?" I asked, trying hard not to laugh at her previous comment.

"Yeah, her…" She said slyly. Before I knew what was happening, Morgan was standing right next to me, staring into my blue eyes curiously. Shit. She was reading my mind again. You see, Morgan had this 'power'. She was able to read people's 'souls' through their eyes.

I watched as her face paled and her eyes refilled with tears. "Morgan," I said, my voice cracking, "It isn't what you think."

"Oh, it couldn't be much clearer Mark," she stated, her voice cracking as well, "You don't want me here. I understand. You hated Mom and Dad, so why should I be any different? You just wanted to escape us, and you did. No need for me to ruin that for you."

With that, Morgan turned around sharply and left. I hopped up and rushed after her. What had I gotten myself into? I could manage with her, even if we were barely scraping by now. I loved my sister; why couldn't she see, er, _read_ that?

I saw Roger walking out of Mimi's apartment. "Roger!" I yelled frantically, "Morgan. Ran away. Must. Help. Save!"

Roger nodded and ran down the stairs with me. We reached the street, crowded as usual, and scanned the horizon. Morgan was nowhere in sight. I racked my brain for any information. I remembered the time Morgan had come to visit a few summers ago. We had gone to the park every day. I smiled, remembering all the fun we'd had.

"The park!" I shouted, dragging Roger with me.

We had run a few blocks when I didn't hear Roger's footsteps behind me. I glanced back to make sure he was there, but he had disappeared. Sighing with frustration, I was cut short as I ran into something. I looked up, rubbing my sore head.

"I'm sorry," a girl who looked a little younger than me was saying, "I should watch where I'm going!"

"That's alright," I mumbled, standing up and offering her my hand to get off the ground.

"If you don't mind me asking, where are you in such a hurry?" She asked, pushing her choppy brown bangs out of her bright blue eyes

"I was running after my sister," I said anxiously, "She ran away…again."

"Well, don't let me keep you then," she said smiling and stepping to the side, "I hope we meet again…um…"

"Mark," I said, sticking out my hand in greeting.

"Anne," she said "Nice to meet you."

Bidding Anne farewell, I wove my way deeper into the park. There were so many places she could be! I sighed and sat down on a faded bench with peeling yellow paint. What was I going to do with her? Morgan was such a handful, and putting up with her was just about the only thing I envied my parents for.

I looked both ways, making sure the coast was clear, before saying, "Morgan, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for _everything_. I know I'm not the best big brother, but I'm all you have right now."

"Oh cheer up Mr. Depressed. You're not THAT bad of a brother." I heard someone say behind me.

Smiling, I turned around to see Morgan. No cuts, no bruises, perfectly intact, which was pretty good for someone her age in this neighborhood. Still, I felt a little bad. "Well then little optimist," I mumbled, mocking her good mood, "What's something I **_have_** done right as an older brother?"

"Easy!" she stated, taking a seat next to me, "You put up with me every year when I come to visit."

I glared at her. "That doesn't count," I said stoutly, "Name another thing."

"Alright. You came to my bat mitzvah last year, even though it meant seeing Mom and Dad. And you didn't ignore them either. You almost talked to them. You included yourself in some stuff. Heck, you even wrote a speech for me!" she said triumphantly.

I looked down the path, trying to avoid Morgan's green eyes. Surprisingly, this wasn't making me feel better. _You put up with me every year when I come to visit._ I mentally shuddered. Every year. Now that I thought back on it, I found it was true. I only saw Morgan once a year. I didn't think I could be any worse of a big brother than I was now. Unless, of course, I couldn't feed her. Then people would come and take her away. I tried not to think of it, but I couldn't get it off my mind.

As if sensing my uneasiness, Morgan said, "I can always work. I'm not just an ignorant little kid. I can help you guys!"

I looked into her eyes, which were filled with hope. She wanted to help us so badly, yet I found myself doubting her decision. Actually, as her older brother and now legal guardian, it was MY decision. "What about school?" I asked uneasily, trying to think of her future, "It's a law."

"But Mark!" she whined, clinging to my arm, "School won't help put food on the table."

I knew she wanted to help, but I didn't think she could. I felt like a criminal, but it had to be done. "No Morgan," I whispered, "You need to go to school."

She laughed. "Good one Mark," she said, "Real funny!"

"Morgan," I said stiffly, "I'm not joking. I know you want to help, but we'll get by. I want you to go to school so you can make something of yourself."

"But Mark," she whispered, her eyes now glossy with tears.

"No," I said sternly, "That's my answer. Maybe when you're older."

She gave me a quizzical look before whispering, "You're just like Mom and Dad." Before I could move an inch, Morgan had gotten up and was slowly walking away. I was too stunned to do anything but watch.

I stood up, opening my mouth to call for her to stop, but I thought better of it. _She has a key._ I thought, gingerly stepping forward. _What a great documentary this would make. "How to keep your younger sister alive"_


	2. Chapter 2

**Probably should have mentioned this before, but it slipped my mind. 1) My friend is also writing this with me, so she deserves credit! 2) We don't own the RENT characters, but we do own Morgan and Anne. We created them. WE HAVE PLAYED GOD! BUAHAHAHA! Okay, I'm done being spastic now. This is what happens when I don't get enough sleep. Or, you know, all the time. Whatever. Enjoy!**

I chuckled at myself, while I walked through the park, absentmindedly looking for familiar faces. I cranked up my camera and paned around slowly, taking the whole of the park. I saw an old blond woman with about a ton of makeup plastered on her face and an outfit so skanky even Mimi wouldn't wear standing against a tree smoking. I lowered the camera to get a better look at what she was doing. She was blowing smoke rings and winking at me, dear lord. I turned around, still clutching my camera to my chest, and breathed out slowly, hoping the woman wasn't still making eyes at me. Suddenly I felt something knock against my feet, sending me tumbling forward into a heap on the ground.

"Owww..." moaned a familiar voice.

I looked up to see Anne, sitting against a tree, sketchbook in her hand and a box of oil pastels next to her. She rubbed her head; her hair was pulled back into a ponytail with a long scarf this time.

"Well, hello stranger." She greeted, watching me as I slowly stood up. I extended my hand to help her up but she didn't take it.

"Nice to see you again," I said, watching her as she lowered her eyes to her pastels and searched for a color.

"You too," She picked up a brown, close to the color of my coat. She glanced up at me before coloring. She then shook her head and closed her drawing pad.

"Would you like to walk with me?" She asked, rising off the ground and hugging her art supplies to her chest.

"Sure…" I answered, looking around to see if Morgan was anywhere near me. I sighed in defeat, "Why not?"

"So," Anne asked, trying to break the somewhat awkward silence, "Did you find your sister?"

I sighed. "Yes," said, "But she's mad at me. I do care about her."

"Yeah," Anne mumbled, staring at the horizon, "I wouldn't really know, seeing as I'm an only child, but my parents are the same way, which is why I ran away."

I cringed and stopped suddenly. What had been an innocent conversation had taken a nasty turn. Why was I being compared to parents all fucking day? I was NOT a parent and didn't intend on being one for a long time. It just so happened that a few lives took a wrong turn and I was stuck babysitting my little sister forever and always.

"Did I say something wrong?" Anne asked nervously.

Yes, I thought. "No," I said reassuringly, "It's been nice talking to you, but I have to go find my sister…again. Maybe we can talk again sometime."

"Yeah, that'd be nice," she said disappointedly, "See you later!"

I walked a little away. I turned to look back at her. She stood in the same spot staring at her pad of paper. I turned away to walk again.

"Mark! Wait!" she called desperately.

I turned to see her rip a sheet of paper out of her book and handed it to me. She kept her head down, her choppy brown bangs covering her face. "I didn't like it anyways." she mumbled.

I didn't really have time (or hands for that matter) to look at the drawing Anne gave me, so I just stuffed it in my jacket pocket, instantly forgetting about it. I decided that I should start heading back to the loft since it was getting dark, and the temperature was dropping steadily. I thought back to Anne and her thin jacket, hoping she was warm enough. _But I barely know her, why do I care?_ I thought, trying to find something to think about that didn't have to do with the blue-eyed girl.

I arrived at the loft without any recollections of how I got there. The faint smell of clam chowder tinged the cold surroundings, giving them a strangely homey feel. I sniffed the air to make sure I wasn't imagining things then pushed open the door and peeked inside.

There was Roger, sprawled across the couch with a bowl on his lap. "Your sister is awesome." He said, shoveling a spoonful of whatever was in the bowl into his mouth.

"Hi Mark!" Morgan said. I turned to find her standing behind me with two bowls of clam chowder in her arms. She held one out to me and smiled a sweet, innocent smile, which made her look even more suspicious than normal. I mean, Morgan, innocent…don't make me laugh!

I took the bowl in my hands; the warmth of the soup immediately defrosted my frozen palms. I placed my camera on the table and sat next to Roger. "You didn't steal this did you?" I asked, taking another look at Morgan's smiling face.

"No silly!" She giggled. I reached up to feel her forehead, to make sure she didn't have a fever or anything.

"Your unusually chipper today."

Morgan smile broadened. "You'll find out about that soon enough, but about the food. Did I forget to tell you that mom and dad left me all their money?" My jaw dropped so far, I wouldn't be surprised if it hit Mimi in the head. "… I didn't? Oops…"

"But…but…" I whined, "Why didn't I get any money?"

Morgan shrugged and wrapped her arms tightly around her thin body. I smiled and draped my jacket around her shoulders. Morgan tugged it on and stuffed her hands in the pocket. A look of shock flooded her face. "And what might this be?" she asked mischievously.

I cringed as she pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket. _Shit. It's Anne's drawing._

"A girl's phone number?" Roger asked hopefully, jumping over the back of the couch to see what Morgan was holding.

"No, it's not a phone number…unless it's a hieroglyphic phone number. It's a painting." Morgan muttered.

"I don't think she painted it," I said, taking the drawing from my sister, "Hey! She drew my camera, and my hands…and my scarf…and my jacket." I searched the carefully crafted portrait to see if I missed anything.

"She signed it," Roger said, pointing to a scribble under the left hand, "Anne McGee."

"Ha, she said she didn't like it."

"Who would? It's a picture of _you_," Morgan said, laughing, "Anyway, Roger and I are gonna go get food for dinner."

"Can I come?" I asked hopefully.

"NO!" they both said quickly and Morgan continued, "You, um, wouldn't want to go. Yeah, um, it's going to be really boring, that's it. I'm just, um, dragging Roger to the, um, the…drugstore, that's right, the drugstore. Um, it's that time of month again. You wouldn't be interested. Well, um, BYE!" And with that Morgan ran out the door, dragging Roger with her.

"My sister is insane…" I mused. I made my way to the fire escape and watched as my sister and my roommate exited the building, laughing and having fun.

I threw myself on the couch, staring at the drawing Anne gave me. I folded it and put it in my picket again before promptly falling asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Again, we don't own RENT or any of its characters. Also, I would like to apologize for grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Can't fix them all, sorry. Comments would be nice. Thanks for reading!**

I woke to the weird feeling of something tickling my face, as well as hearing a high-pitched giggle, followed by chuckling.

"We have to get Marky-Warky all dressed up for his date tonight!" someone said bubbly.

"My what now?" I asked without moving a bit.

"Oh nothing," a voice said mischievously, "Anyway, it's time for breakfast!"

I walked into the bathroom and glanced nonchalantly up at the mirror. After a moment of thought, I screamed, "WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU TWO DO TO ME!"

I splashed a bit of water on my face and scrubbed as hard as I could. Eventually all the makeup came off, but my cheeks were red due to an allergic reaction to the blush Morgan and Roger put on me.

"You look good with a little color in your cheeks, Mark," Roger said, holding a bowl of Capin' Crunch.

I glared at both Morgan and Roger equally before grabbing a bowl myself. I pulled the drawing out of my pocket and looked at it again. Morgan giggled. "What?" I asked. My skin was burning up thanks to all the makeup, which made her laugh harder.

"Nothing!" she laughed, almost in hysterics. I rolled my eyes and went back to eating breakfast. Morgan occasionally would look up, attempt to stifle a laugh, and return to her cereal. Though I was mad, I couldn't help but notice how desperately she clutched her thin jacket. It _was_ cold in here, but it wasn't our fault! Well, yes it was, but still.

"Mark, I finally realized why it's so damn cold in here." Morgan mumbled.

"Two things," I replied, "One, don't swear. Two, why is it so 'damn' cold in here?"

Without looking up from her cereal, Morgan said, "Because you're too sucky of a photographer to make any money."

I felt my cheeks burn (even more than before with the makeup) and turn red with anger. "Two things," I said, "One, I am not a photographer, but a director. Two, I'M NOT SUCKY AT IT!"

"Then why is it so cold in here? Why am I providing all the food?"

"Because Mom and Dad like you more. They seem to love ignorant brats that are completely self-centered! I had a grand old life here, and then you barged in without warning! Just get out! I never wanted a sister! I just put up with you because the 'rents made me!"

Still steaming, my cold heart melted when I saw Morgan's face. She was looking at me with wide eyes. Unshed tears blurred the green hue I loved so much. Her lips formed a gentle hill. Much to my dismay, a single tear escaped and slid down her cheek. Covering her now streaming eyes, Morgan ran out of the room.

"That was cold," Roger whispered as I headed towards the door. What had I gotten myself into?

I grabbed my coat and walked out the door. It was getting dark by then, and the streetlamps were just turning on. Making my way to the park, I heard Anne's voice behind me.

"It's getting late. Shouldn't a girl your age be at home?"

I turned to see Anne and Morgan sitting together on a bench under a streetlamp. Although it was below freezing and windy that night, Anne was just wearing a thin sweatshirt. She shivered in the breeze, her arm around Morgan's huddled body.

"Morgan!" I yelled. For a split second I could have sworn she smiled at me, but it mutated into a death glare and she turned back to Anne.

"I told you he'd come for me." She mumbled.

Anne laughed. "I'd like to say it's nice to see you again, but considering the circumstance, that doesn't sound like the right thing to say."

I smiled and said, "C'mon Morgan, let's go home," I yanked Morgan to her feet and she winced in pain.

"Ow," she moaned, gently clutching her ankle, "That hurt!"

"Oh, you're hurt," I mumbled, still angry with her from earlier, "We'd better get some ice on that."

"No shit Sherlock," Morgan muttered, sitting back down on the bench, huddling next to Anne for warmth.

"Morgan, don't swear," I said, annoyance strongly weaved in my voice.

"Well there you are!"

I turned around to see Roger standing there with her arms crossed and a smirk plastered on his face. Buy when he saw Morgan cradling her ankle and biting her lip in pain, the smirk disappeared.

"Mind fixing me up while Beauty and the Beast recollect on old times?" Morgan asked Roger. He nodded and they disappeared in the darkness.

"You cold?" I asked, watching a tremor make its way through Anne's body.

She nodded. "Yeah, just a little."

I took off my jacket and draped it around her shoulders. "That better?" I asked. I kept my hands on her shoulders and hoped she wouldn't mind.

"Thanks…" she mumbled.

Suddenly, I heard a Morgan-sounding voice from the bushes say, "Yeah, ow. Roger, that's my leg. MY LEG DOESN'T GO THAT WAY!"

I sighed and said, "Doesn't a certain somebody need to be taking a certain somebody else to get ice?"

Roger and Morgan rolled out of the bushes and began walking sheepishly away.

"LIMP!" Anne shouted right in my ear, causing me to wince.

"What the hell?" I asked, covering my ears.

"Oh, Morgan's walking with a limp." She replied.

I turned back around to see that Morgan was, indeed, limping. However, Roger seemed to notice and picked her up bridal style. "Hey, Mark!" he called, "We're meeting at the Life Café in an hour."

"Yeah! So be there or be square!" Morgan added, "You have to introduce me to all your friends!"

"Life Café?" Anne asked curiously, "I've never been there before."

"Then I insist upon you joining us!" I stated.

"Very well Sir Knight," she said.

I took her arm and escorted her to my bike. "Your chariot awaits m' lady." I said nobly, bowing to her slightly.

"Thank you kind sir," she said gratefully, curtsying. I helped her onto the handlebars and we rode off. And if there had been a sunset, we sure as hell would have ridden off into it.

**To be continued…**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yeah, I don't own RENT…most unfortunately cause it's awesome! My friend is helping me write this (anomaly124 on I'm pretty sure). And I kinda forgot to mention this, but this is postRENT, so no Angel, sorry. Enjoy!**

We got to Life Café right on time. However, everyone else was already there, making it seem like we were late. Anne and I were swamped with people as soon as we walked in the door.

"Pookie," Maureen said, pouting her lips, "Who's your friend?"

"Everyone," I said, forcing my voice above the roar of the crowd (which only consisted of Collins, Maureen, Joanne, Mimi, Anne and me), "This is my friend, Anne."

Luckily, Maureen didn't try to start flirting with Anne- or at least _overly_ flirt- and the ambience of everything was so carefree and happy. I constantly had one eye on the door. Roger and Morgan still hadn't shown up, and I was worried about what might happen. Morgan was so, well, out there, and I feared the atmosphere would change drastically with her arrival.

"Hey Mark," Mimi asked, her face paler than usual, "Where's Roger?"

"He's with my sister. She hurt her-" I mumbled, but I didn't have a chance to finish.

"A _SISTER_?" Mimi shrieked and the entire restaurant became dead silent.

As if on cue, Roger and Morgan walked into the café just at that moment. All eyes flew off of me and landed on the girl being held bridal style in Roger's arms. "Hi everybody!" Morgan said enthusiastically, "I'm Morgan!"

They were mobbed, just as Anne and I were, but Roger fended them off. "She's hurt!" he said, "Be careful! And give her some space." He carefully placed her in a chair and came to greet me. I nodded hello and we watched the interesting introductions each friend was making.

As each person said their hellos, the volume of our talking grew louder and louder, until Collins, last in line, said something I will never forget.

"Hi there," Collins said cheerfully, "I'm Collins. Tom Collins."

"I'm Morgan!" she said, looking up with her lovely green eyes.

The whole thing seemed to go in slow motion. As soon as their eyes met Collins gasped. He got down on his knees and held Morgan's head between his hands. "She has Angel's eyes." He muttered.

The room seemed to gasp and then grew silent. All eyes flew back to Morgan, who was still looking Collins straight in the eye. He was biting his lip to stop the tears I saw welling in his eyes.

Everyone ogled her, including me. I was dumbstruck. She had no idea who Angel was, yet it seemed like Angel was right there in the room with us. Not just in spirit and in our hearts, but actually there, just invisible.

Then, breaking the eerie ambience she had just set, Morgan said, "Um, who the hell is Angel anyway?"

Collins laughed, as did nearly everyone else. "Morgan," I said meekly, "Don't swear."

The 'party' continued, and soon everyone forgot about what had just happened. I wanted to know how Morgan had done that. How she had known. But I didn't want to ruin her fun, so I kept my mouth shut. However, I couldn't look at her quite the same way as before.

"Mark, what's wrong?" Anne asked me. Apparently my lack of movement gave something away.

"Nothing" I mumbled, "Its just… my sister…" I trailed off, and the demonic 'what-ifs' entered my head. What if we ran out of money? What if she begins to hate me? What if…. What if I really can't keep her alive?

"Your parents left you and her in about the worst part of America to be raising a child in." She said matter of factly, "I would know, I have been a squatter since I was twelve."

I didn't know what to say, and I stared at the now-fascinating floor. I shifted my gaze to Morgan, who was smiling widely. Somehow they had started a game of truth or dare, except it seemed more like truth AND dare.

"Hey Roger," Collins said, "Which do you want first, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"If April came back right this instant, alive and well, would you dump Mimi and go out with her?"

Roger looked stunned, as well as Mimi. She tried her best to give him the evil eye, but it looked more like a face a constipated seal would make.

"I'd tell her to fuck off and go find someone else to get high with!" Everyone laughed and cheered as Mimi jumped on Roger's lap and kissed the living daylights out of him.

Morgan had since separated herself from the party and was calling for me. "Can we go home?" She asked keeping her eyes on the floor. I reached out for her but she moved. I suddenly remembered something.

"Did you bring your pills with you?" I asked crossing my fingers that she did.

She nodded. I sighed in relief "Stay here. I'll tell everyone that we're leaving."

"Alright," she mumbled, looking at the floor.

"Hey guys!" I said, "Morgan and I are gonna head out. Thanks for inviting us, we had a blast."

I was swept away by a flood of 'good-byes'. Roger and Mimi even took a break from their make out session to bid us farewell. I scanned the group for Anne, but I couldn't see her anywhere. Morgan remained near the door, looking at me with curious eyes.

"Mark," she whispered, "Can we go home?"

I nodded and walked with her out the door. I told Morgan to wait right where she was while I fetched my bike. When I pulled it out of the bushes, I saw a piece of paper on it. I quickly skimmed it and learned that it was from Anne. Luckily, she'd had a good time. At the bottom of the note, she left her phone number.

Smiling, I quickly made my way back to Morgan. Her lips were blue and she was shivering, but she was grinning widely. "Finally!" she muttered, "I thought you were going to leave me to fucking freeze to death!"

"Morgan, don't swear," I said, "Anyway, I'd never do that!"

A sly smile grew on her face. "Someone doesn't remember," she said in a singsong voice, "But I won't go into detail. Let's just say I'm still cold in ninety degree weather."

I mentally slapped myself. I really _was_ a bad brother. The memory flooded back to me. It was December, and I'd taken Morgan ice-skating. As she strapped on her skates, I went to buy some hot chocolate. However, when I reached the booth, I remembered that I had a date with Maureen. I didn't realize I'd forgotten nine-year-old Morgan until after midnight. She nearly had died. It took Mom and Dad _years_ to allow her to come back to visit.

As if sensing my pain, Morgan gave me a hug. "Don't worry about it," she said, "I'm right here, right now, and very much alive!"

I laughed and helped her onto the handlebars of my bike. She was right. Why brood over the past when you can enjoy the present! As if to unnerve me even more, Morgan took her hands off the bike and spread her arms out.

"Look Mark!" she stated, "I'm flying!"

"Just be careful," I mumbled.


	5. Chapter 5

Same old stuff. I don't own RENT. My friend is helping me write this. Again, postRENT story. Enjoy much!

As soon as we got home Morgan and I flopped onto the couch. "Off my bed" she mumbled, yawning and stretching out so her feet were on my lap. She rolled over onto her side and fell asleep.

I reached in my pocket to make sure Anne's number was still there. Morgan must have heard me because she opened one eye and slurred "Wazzat?"

"Just something from Anne." I said "Now, go back to sleep."

"I didn't see you say good bye to her when we left, did you two have fun together?" She asked, now wide awake and sitting up.

"Yeah, she left before we did. Why the sudden interest in my social life?"

"No reason." And with that Morgan fell asleep again.

Roger came home very late that night. I hadn't been able to sleep, so I was up getting myself some tea when I heard the door open. It was too dark to see his face, but I could tell there was something wrong. I watched him enter the kitchen and make himself some coffee. He sat down next to me and sighed.

"What's up?" I asked, knowing all to well what the answer was going to be.

"Mimi is getting sick…" Roger trailed off and looked down at his mug. Roger has been denying the fact that there was anything wrong with Mimi since the night we almost lost her. We all knew not to bring it up because if we did, we would get the same answer. "There is nothing wrong with Mimi! She's fine!" He would yell, holding her tightly. Every now and then he would have to reassure himself of that, mumbling "she's fine" to himself when he thought no one was listening.

"Collins and I had to take her to the hospital. Oh, that reminds me. Morgan told me to give you these." He reached into his pocket, searching for something.

"It wasn't her pills was it?" I asked, hoping they weren't.

"Yeah, prescription." He mumbled standing up and searching his back pocket.

I sighed and held my head in my hands. "Shit," I mumbled, obviously annoyed, "Could you have left them at the Life?"

"No… she gave them to me when you left, and I'm sure I put them in my pocket!" He looked around the table to see if he had left them there.

I let out an angry sigh. "What about the hospital?"

"No. What are you getting all bent out of shape about? I mean, you have the prescription right? She can go a little while without them."

"That's like you missing a dose of AZT, Roger! It just fucking can't happen!"

"Oh…"

We searched for about half an hour, me suggesting places that he could have left them and him dismissing all of them. I was starting to get very annoyed with Roger about losing something as important as Morgan's medications.

"I found it!" he sang, holding his jacket in one hand and the small orange tube in another. I breathed again.

"Thank god…"

Roger forked it over and I securely tucked it away in my jacket pocket. I tried not to think about what could have happened if he hadn't found the medicine, and concentrate on how lucky we were that we did.

"So," Roger said, "What's it for?"

I opened my mouth to tell him, but abruptly shut it. In my heart I knew that Roger should know. It would probably turn out to be important that he did. On the other hand, this was Morgan's secret, and I had no right to tell him. "That's not for me to say," I muttered, "Morgan will tell you."

Roger nodded and glanced at Morgan who was still sleeping soundly on the couch. "It's hard to believe you two are related, "Roger said, smiling, "She's so cute and you're, well, NOT!"

"Oh shut it. Morgan's rubbing off on you way too fucking much…and she's only been here a couple of days." I groaned.

Roger's smile faded not long after. I could tell he was still upset about Mimi. "Listen, Roger," I whispered, "If you ever need to talk…"

"What's there to talk about?" he snapped, "April and Angel were snatched away, and now the same thing is happening to Mimi. If I were you, Mark, I'd head for the hills. Everyone I care for is leaving me alone. It was a bad idea bringing Morgan here. Death is in the air Mark. She's young, and could really be traumatized. I don't want to lose anyone else."

His words were followed by an awkward silence. I wanted to say something, ANYTHING, but I couldn't find the right words. Taking a final gulp of coffee, Roger headed to bed, his hand momentarily resting on Morgan's cheek along the way.

I held my breath, trying to keep the words from coming out; _Morgan needs to tell him, not me. It's affecting her, not me._ But before I could swallow the thoughts, the words came bursting out of my mouth. "Roger, Morgan is autistic."

"What?" Roger asked, turning to Morgan and looking at her for some sign of a problem.

"She has a mental disability called autism; it affects the way she does things. Like thinking, and speaking and socializing and stuff. She doesn't have it as bad as some kids, but she still needs meds."

"Oh, so that's what the pills were for?"

"Yeah, she's really screwed over when she misses a dose. She's been taking them since she was a baby"

"I'm really sorry Mark."

I smiled. One of the things that's the most fun about living with Roger is making him guilty. "Sorry? For what?" I asked.

"For almost losing Morgan's meds."

"Its ok," I laughed, giving Roger a hug, "G'night."

I looked down at Morgan and smiled. What she didn't know wouldn't hurt her. "I'm sorry," I whispered and began walking away.

"That's alright Mark," she replied.

I turned back around, wide-eyed. Had she really heard the entire conversation? "What now?" I asked.

Morgan shifted on the couch and mumbled, "I'm not mad that you ate the last Twinkie. I kinda wanted it though. Um, ew, no. I don't want it NOW!"

I laughed to myself. I hadn't been home for so long, I'd forgotten that she occasionally talked in her sleep.

**To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 6

**As of today (April 22) I should get up about three more chapters! Hooray! Remember, we don't own RENT. But my friend is helping me write this, and this is postRENT (sorry to all those Angel fans, but it must be done). Hope you enjoy!**

That morning Roger was up before I was. He sat at the table sipping at a cup of coffee and reading The Village Voice. I grabbed a poptart and stuffed it into my mouth, ignoring the toaster sitting idly next to me.

"Wheffths Moorgah?" I asked through a mouth of poptart.

Roger pointed to the couch. I swallowed.

"Still sleeping?" I asked, pulling the little orange bottle out of my pocket.

"No. Awake." She said, looking up from her bowl of Cap'in Crunch. I gave her the bottle; she just looked at it idly and put it down next to her.

"I'm going. Roger take your AZT. You take your meds too, Morgan" She stuck her tongue out at me and popped two pills into her mouth, swallowing them without water.

"Happy?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"Sure am!" I said cheerfully.

"How many can you swallow at once?" Roger asked, "My record is eleven."

Both Morgan and I looked at him dumbstruck. "Uh, oh." Morgan said softly.

Roger's cheeks turned bright red. "It's not what you think…" he stuttered.

"Whatever," Morgan mumbled, getting up to clean her bowl.

"Oh, that's alright!" Roger nearly shouted, "Just sit back down. I'll clear that for you!"

"Um, thanks." Morgan said.

"Well, I'm off to film," I said, "Roger, will you watch Morgan?"

"Um…" he muttered, seemingly uncomfortable with the idea, "Why don't we all go? I mean, it's such a lovely day!"

"Alright," I mumbled, shrugging and helping Morgan find her shoe.

When we finally did (how her shoe got in the freezer I will NEVER know) Morgan started tugging them on.

"Do you need help with that?" Roger asked.

Morgan looked at him curiously and me suspiciously before saying, "Nah, that's alright. I've got it."

Soon enough we were walking down the street towards the park, where I seemed to be most of the time lately. Roger had his guitar and Morgan was fiddling with my camera, which she had snatched out of my hands.

The three of us plopped down on a bench in the middle of the park. We had created a Morgan sandwich, but Roger kept scooting away from her until he was nearly falling to the ground.

"Hey Morgan," I said, "Why don't you go get some hot chocolate? You look frozen to dea- just really cold."

"Caught yourself, ay? Sure, be back in a few," she giggled, heading off.

I turned to Roger, who was inching back onto the bench. "Why are you acting so weird?" I asked.

"Weird? Me? Nah, I'm just worried about Mimi, that's all." He looked around, "I should go visit her."

And with that he was off. I grabbed my camera and started filming "October 13th 1991, Roger runs to the hospital to go see Mimi who's slow deterioration has left us all emotionally drained and worried for Roger's mental health"

I scanned the park for Morgan, who was nowhere to be found. Not wanting to leave the bench hence she come back, I filmed what was going on around me. Through the camera I soon saw a familiar face.

"And here's the lovely Anne McGee," I said loud enough for her to hear, "Looking ravishing in her jacket and sipping…why, is that coffee I smell! Amazing!"

Anne laughed and sat down next to me. Sneakily, she grabbed my camera and pointed it in my direction. "And HERE is the famous Mark Cohen, who is, once again, hiding behind his camera. He's lost his sister twice already."

"Hey!" I shouted, lunging for my camera, "I resent that! I'm a good big brother!"

She handed back the camera and said, "Then her running away twice over a three day period is perfectly fine? Speaking of which, where is Morgan anyway?"

"She…um…I…er…I have no clue." I muttered sheepishly.

"Make that THREE times over a three day period," Anne laughed, "C'mon, let's go find her."

I nodded and helped her off the bench. We soon forgot about finding Morgan and concentrated more on the scenery in the park. The leaves were, as always, amazing. I tended to dislike fall, which brought cold weather, but Anne helped me find the beauty in it. Anyway, how could I hate the fall now? It had brought both Morgan and Anne into my life.

Cars honked as we exited the park and rushed across the street to the cemetery. We were passing by, when suddenly I heard a small, familiar voice. I gently hushed Anne's giggling and lead her deeper into the cemetery.

"Angel," someone muttered, "Angel. Ah, here it is! Angel Dumott Schunard."

I silently pulled Anne behind a tree. There, next to a grave, sat Morgan. I watched, wide-eyed, as she did something I would never do.

"Hi Angel," Morgan said, "I don't know you, and you don't know me, but it feels like we've been friends forever. Seeing as we've never met, I guess I'll introduce myself. I'm Morgan, Mark's little sister."

I glanced down at Anne, who's eyes were glossy with unshed tears. I knew how she felt, if not more. A bolt of emotion passed through my body, and I bit my lip to hold back the tears.

Morgan continued, "Everyone misses you, especially Collins. I met him yesterday. Although I don't really know him that well, and he didn't say a word, I could tell he wished you were there. But don't worry, he's still living life to the fullest, I have a feeling that's what you'd like. I have a favor to ask, and it's not a selfish one. It's about the people I care about, people you cared about, and people who still care about you. Angel, could you please help Mimi. Even though they don't know it, I heard Roger and Mark talking last night. Mimi's sick. She went to the hospital. If anything happened to her, well, that just brings me to Roger. If anything happened to Mimi, Roger would just die. I couldn't bear to watch that happen. Though I've only known him for a few days, I can tell we're going to be great friends. And lastly, please look after Mark. He's got it tougher than people would realize. He's trying to pursue his dream while still being a good friend and a good brother. He'll have it tough if Mimi passes on. Roger will most likely get all depressed. Mark has a new friend, Anne. I really like her. I hope things work out between them. And lastly, he has to look after ME! And I must say, that's no easy task. Just please help Mark get along, and I'll try my best to help."

With that, Morgan bent down and placed a single red rose on Angel's grave. I felt something tickling my cheek. When I went to wipe it away, I realized it was a tear. Both Anne and I fell to the ground when Morgan walked by so she wouldn't see us.

Grabbing Anne's hand, I dragged her to the front of the cemetery. We got there seconds before Morgan did. "Morgan!" I yelled, running after her, "Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you!"

She smiled weakly and said, "Never mind. Where's Roger?"

"At the hospital," I muttered.

"Really? Why?" she asked.

_As if you didn't know._ "Visiting Mimi, she's sick. Why don't we go visit them?"

Morgan nodded and then said, "I see you called Anne."

"No. I saw her at the park and we started talking."

"That's what they all say…"

"Mimi…" Anne mumbled, pinning her hair up with a pencil. "Isn't she Rogers's girlfriend?"

I nodded "Everyone from last night is going to be there."

As we approached the hospital Anne stopped. She held her drawing book to her chest and looked up at the enormous building. Morgan had already gone inside and was waiting in the lobby for us.

"What's wrong?" I asked, seeing the nervous look in her eyes.

Anne blinked a few times then turned to me and smiled. "Nothing. This place just gives me heebie-jeebies, that's all."

Morgan ran out of the building, "Hurry up!" she shouted.

Running? Wait a second… "Hey Morgan!" I yelled back, walking up the stairs, "How's your ankle? You don't seem to be limping."

She blushed. "What can I say? I'm a fast healer."

"Of course you are…" I said suspiciously.

Morgan rolled her eyes and ran back inside. I smiled and turned back to Anne. "Here," I mumbled, "Give me your hand."

She extended her hand and I carefully led her into the hospital. Morgan was already out of sight, no surprise there. I went up to the front desk to find out which room Mimi was in.

About five minutes later, Anne and I burst into room 312. Everyone who had been at the café last night was there. Roger was sitting near the bed, holding Mimi's hand. He looked up and smiled. "Thanks for coming," he muttered.

I scanned the room for Morgan, but like before, she was nowhere to be seen. "Hey Collins," I said, weaving my way through the multicolored balloons to him, "Have you seen Morgan?"

"Not since last night," he responded.

I sighed and said, "Well, I guess I should go find her."

"No need to!" A voice said.

Morgan…who else? She made her way over to me and gave me a brief hug and a smile. Then she walked over to Roger and sat down next to him. As she whispered something in his ear, his small smile turned into a frown. I was about to tell her to not bother Roger with bad news, but his frown quickly turned into a grin. "Thanks Morgan," he whispered, giving her a hug.

I looked at her curiously, but she wouldn't look me in the eye. Well, that's Morgan for you- chipper one moment, secretive and solemn the next. So instead of wasting valuable staring-for-information time on Morgan, I shifted my gaze to Roger. Luckily, he wasn't as prepared, and I managed to catch his eye. Our connection was held for about thirty seconds, and then he looked away, blushing.

"Well," Joanne muttered, pulling on her jacket, "Maureen and I had better go. We have to go work on her protest."

"Another one?" I asked.

"Yeah," Maureen said sweetly.

"About what?"

"It wouldn't be a secret if I told you."

I sighed. "Alright, well, see you later!"

Maureen and Joanne waved goodbye and exited the room, which suddenly seemed smaller. Now there was only Collins, Morgan, Roger, Anne and me…and Mimi of course.

"C'mon Roger," Collins said, "You look like a wreck. You need a break. Let's go down to the food court."

"But what about Mimi?" he asked softly.

"She'll be okay for an hour or so. Anyway, Morgan, Mark and Anne are here. She's in good hands."

"If it'll make you feel any better," Morgan said, "I'll come too. Then you won't have to worry about me wrecking havoc."

I could tell Roger was about to say 'no', but Morgan gave him a weird look. After a minute or so, he finally understood what it meant, though I still had no clue. "Alright," he said reluctantly.

As the door closed behind them, I took Roger's seat and held Mimi's hand. Anne sat down across the bed. She'd occasionally glance at me, but her attention was fixated on Mimi. Anne was obviously captivated by _something_, but I didn't get a chance to figure out what.

"Mark, will you get me a soda?" she asked, though I could tell she was just trying to get me out of the room.

"What kind?"

"Doesn't matter."

I nodded and made my way out the door. I _almost_ stayed by the door to eavesdrop, but that would be too Morgan-like, so I went downstairs. Instead of getting a soda, I bought a cheap packet of crackers. I munched on them slowly, making sure to save some for Anne. Of course, I lost track, and ended up eating them all, though I had a feeling she wouldn't mind.

**To be continued…**


	7. Chapter 7

**The usual. I don't own RENT. PostRENT story. Friend's helping me write. Enjoy. (Sorry this is so brief, but I have a few more to do and I'm getting antsy with these little beginning things)**

When I was done, I made my way back up to Mimi's room. "Can I come in?" I asked through the door. 

"Yeah," a voice said.

I softly walked in and saw Anne collecting her art supplies. "I have to go," she muttered, "I was waiting with Mimi until you came back. I'll talk to you later."

Before I could say a word, Anne rushed out of the room. _Was she mad at me_? Shrugging, I sat next to Mimi. Suddenly, I couldn't take it anymore. The whole atmosphere was wrong. The dull gray of the blankets. The humid air. Mimi's pale face. Her smile-less lips. This was not the Mimi Marquez I knew, nor the environment she'd usually be in. _When were they going to come back? _I thought to myself. I needed to get out of here…and fast.

But they didn't come back quickly, or at least quickly enough. The room started spinning around me. The air became heavy and hot. Everything fuzzed over, and became black and white.

I fell to the floor, my breathing shallow. "Mark?" a voice called, "Mark? Mark. Mark!" The voice became frantic and desperate. "Help!"

The heavy thud of footsteps rang through my ear. I felt a hand on my head and then felt myself being picked up. A buzzing sound, most likely a voice, called to me in a calming manner, but the breathing of the person was frenzied and didn't calm me down.

Something wet fell on my face. At first, I thought the tiny droplets were rain, but I then realized they were tears.

"Mark," someone whispered, "Oh Mark." And then I blacked out.

When I woke up, the sun was setting. The lack of natural light cast long shadows throughout the room. I was sitting in an extremely uncomfortable armchair next to Mimi's bed.

Morgan was sitting on the arm of my chair. Her head rested on my shoulder. Morgan always looks so sweet when she's asleep. Why she never stays that way I don't understand. I carefully got up and shifted Morgan onto the seat of the chair.

"Mark," she mumbled, still asleep, "Why did you go?"

I sighed before exiting the room, my stomach growling. I ignored the vending machines, seeing as I had no money, and made my way out the hospital doors. I was pretty sure there'd be food at the loft.

Sure enough, the kitchen was full of delicious edibles. Shrugging off all thoughts of healthy foods, I grabbed a chocolate snack pack.

I smiled, remembering one of the few good times I'd had at home. I'd been eleven and Morgan was only four. She'd come home crying from preschool, upset about something that had happened earlier. To make her feel better, we walked down to the corner store and bought pack after pack of pudding cups. After drudging home, we proceeded to fling pudding at each other in the backyard. The punishment that followed was awful, but I'll always remember the wide smile on Morgan's face.

After I finished my midnight snack, I sat down on the couch. No need to return to the hospital now. They wouldn't miss me for too long. I smiled, thinking about the commotion everyone would make when they awoke and I wasn't there.

Not even bothering to kick off my shoes, I sprawled out on the couch. Sure, Morgan would probably get mad at me for tracking mud in her 'bed', but I'd deal with that later. I looked up at the ceiling, not the least bit tired. I went to find my camera, only to remember I'd left it at the hospital. Fuck.

Sighing, I arose from the couch. I wanted my camera. It was like a fucking security blanket. I made my way out the door, pulling my jacket tightly around me, as I was not so friendly greeted by the piercing cold air.

The trip to the hospital seemed to grow longer and longer as sleep tried to overcome me. Soon, I was completely exhausted. I was about to turn back and sleep in the loft when the hospital came into view. Rushing towards it, I soon found myself back in the uncomfortable armchair. Pulling Morgan closer for warmth, I drifted off to sleep.

"Mark," someone whispered, gently shaking me awake, "Mark, I need your help."

I opened my eyes to find myself face-to-face with Roger. "What's wrong?" I asked, rubbing my eyes and yawning.

"Morgan's acting all weird. She's been like that since last night. I don't get it. She won't make eye contact with anyone. She wouldn't even let me give her a hug when you passed out. By the way, how are you feeling?"

"Fine," I mumbled, "Anyway, did Morgan get her second dose of meds yesterday?"

"Second dose…" Roger said unsurely.

"Oh fuck, she didn't? Where is she?"

Roger pointed to Mimi's bed. I looked over his shoulder and saw Morgan holding Mimi's hand. When she saw me, she briefly smiled and left her post to give me a hug. "Hi," she whispered.

This was not like the usual Morgan. She needed her meds. "I'll run back to the loft and get her meds," I muttered.

"I don't think so!" Roger said, putting his hand on my shoulder to prevent me from getting up, "You gave us all a nasty fright last night, and you're not going anywhere until I say so."

"Okay," I said, "Then you go get her meds."

"But what about Mimi?" he asked.

"I'll be here with her the entire time, seeing as I can't leave without your permission."

"But…what about Mimi?"

I sighed. "Roger, stop being such an ass and please go get Morgan's meds."

"Can't Morgan get her own fucking meds?" he whined.

"No, Morgan can't get her own fucking meds Roger. You're being real selfish. If Anne were in the hospital and you needed your AZT, I'd get it for you."

"Interesting name choice," he said slyly.

"Oh just shut the fuck up and go get her meds."

Reluctantly, Roger left, mumbling and groaning the whole time. He came back not too long after. His face was red and his breath was quick. He tossed the bottle to Morgan who fumbled with it before finally opening it and popping two pills in her mouth.

"What was that all about?" Mimi asked.

"She's got-" Roger started, But Morgan coughed and shot him a look that would have froze Benny to the concrete during one of Maureen's infamous protests.

"Its nothing, really," She said, keeping her eyes on the tiled floor.

"I should get her home, she looks tired." I said taking Morgan's arm and pulling her out the door.

"No I'm not." She complained.

I basically dragged her all the way back to the loft.

"Marrrrrrk!" Morgan moaned, "Can we go do something?"

"Like what?" I asked, still a little annoyed with Roger and his little slip-up.

"Its almost lunch time, you could call Anne and we could go eat together!"

I gave Morgan a weird look before shooting down the idea. "Rest first. Anyway, I'm not even supposed to be here anyway. Roger said I couldn't leave until he said so."

Morgan rolled her eyes. "I'm not ti- hey! Why's there mud all over my bed?"

I blushed. Oops…my bad. "I dunno," I slurred, trying to avoid her eyes, "Must've come from the ceiling."

She looked at me suspiciously. "Good thing you came back Mark," she mumbled, "Or you would've felt my wrath."

"Ooooh. I'm quaking in my boots."

Morgan turned to me, her eyes dull. "Mark, will you promise me something?"

"Depends. What is it?"

"Promise you'll never leave me alone. Mimi's dying, and she's taking Roger with her. Please, I don't know what I'd do without you Mark."

I opened my mouth to promise, but caught myself. I could drop dead right now. "No," I whispered, "I can't do that. I'm sorry Morgan."

I barely caught the tears in her eyes before she mumbled, "Okay," and lied down on the couch. Her breathing steadied as she fell asleep.

I watched her sleep for a few minutes. I could almost convince myself that she was normal when she was asleep. Tell myself that there was nothing wrong with her, nothing that could keep her form being herself.

The phone rang; I didn't bother going to pick it up. I turned my attention to the answering machine.

"Speeeeeeak"

"Mark, don't screen. It's me, Roger. I think I'm going to be here for a while, and the hospital food is shit, so if you could go and grab me something for lunch-"

It was Mimi's voice now. She sounded worse today, maybe because it was still early… "And bring Anne with you when you come back."

I grabbed the phone. "Ask Roger what he wants to eat… Ok… Ok! Ok! I'm going! Jesus Roger! Got it. Ok, bye!"

I wrote a little note to Morgan telling her where I was and how to call Mimi's room and stuck it to her forehead. I swung my bag over my shoulder, and walked out the door, looking back on Morgan once before descending down the steps.

I took a short cut through the park, silently hoping to find Anne there. With no luck I made my way to Burger King to buy Roger, Mimi, and me some lunch.

**To be continued…**


	8. Chapter 8

**I hope you guys are enjoying the story. It's quite fun to write actually (well, at least Morgan is). Remember, only Jonathon Larson owns RENT.**

I trudged up the steps into the hospital, Burger King bag in hand. I'd managed to call Anne at the restaurant, and she was supposedly going to be there 'any minute now'. I hid the bag of food under my jacket as I walked past the front desk. The hospital always seemed to have weird rules and I didn't want to take any chances.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in the door was the orange bottle of Morgan's pills on the end table. Sighing, I picked them up and stuffed them in my jacket pocket. "And why didn't anyone tell me I forgot these?" I asked.

"You walked out too soon," Roger answered, "And now that I've got you back here, you're stuck. You weren't supposed to leave Sleeping Beauty."

"I have food," I said, "Be nice."

Roger laughed, and grabbed the bag out of my hand and distributed it equally among Mimi, Anne, himself and me. I took a big bite out of my burger and smiled. It'd been a long time since I'd had Burger King. Everyone else seemed to like it as well.

Everyone, of course, except for Anne. She smiled and thanked me for the food, eating a single fry than placing the rest on the ground by her feet. I looked at her trying my hardest not to jump to conclusions.

"I'm not really hungry." She mumbled, "I will be once I get out of here though."

I cocked my head and raised an eyebrow at her.

"I don't like hospitals." She mumbled into her sketchpad.

"Oh."

After about two hours of talking and sitting around, I began to get restless. "I'm going to go check up on Morgan. See you guys later."

"I'll go too!" chimed Anne, obviously happy to have a reason to leave the cramped hospital room. Picking up her food and stuffing it in the bag, Anne followed me out the door.

Before we even left the room, I heard Mimi and Roger laughing, hopefully meaning she'd get better soon and everything could go back to normal. Of course, Roger and Mimi weren't the only ones having fun. Anne and I talked nonstop on the way to the loft.

"So what do you usually draw?" I asked, unusually interested.

"Oh, it depends," she answered, "I draw what appeals to me. Inner beauty is a biggie, but I usually just draw what I can."

I nodded, and she asked, "What do you usually film?"

"I used to do scripted stuff, but now I'm big on documentaries. I just finished one about HIV and homeless people and shit like that."

The talking continued, and we soon found ourselves at the loft. Still laughing and chatting, we walked up the stairs. Gasping, our conversation stopped abruptly as we entered the room.

The loft was a mess! Furniture was overturned. Cabinets were open and food was all over the place. There were muddy footprints everywhere. Some, however, were red. _I sure hope that isn't blood. _I thought to myself, nearly gagging. It looked like we'd been mugged.

A sour taste filled my mouth. Where was Morgan? My heart picked up pace and I began searching the loft for any signs of my little sister, hoping she was okay. "She's over here!" I heard Anne call.

I rushed over to her. Sure enough, Morgan was huddled in the corner, covered in that red stuff, most probably blood now that I thought about it. "Morgan, what happened?" I asked urgently.

"Oh it was terrible!" she moaned, starting to cry.

She looked up at me, and a smile slowly crossed her face. "Morgan…"

"That's the last time you desert me here!" she nearly yelled, bursting out laughing, "Gosh, you should have seen the look on your face!"

"Morgan, you really scared me! That was a really mean thing to do!" I yelled.

"'Serves you right," she mumbled, still giggling.

"Why I ought to…" I whispered, grinding my teeth.

"Ought to what?" she asked teasingly, "Strangle me to death?"

"Doesn't sound half bad," I muttered before reaching out.

"Eep!" Morgan squealed.

"Mark!" Anne yelled, "Leave your sister alone."

"Why?"

"Because I know a better way to get back at her."

Morgan paled and her eyes grew large. "Uh oh…"

"Mark," Anne instructed, "Watch Morgan. I'll be right back. Just need to make a phone call. But I think I'll use Mimi's phone. I don't want Morgan to hear."

I nodded as Anne smiled mischievously and disappeared out the door. I glanced at Morgan, who was beginning to tremble and rock back and forth nervously. I laughed to myself and pulled the note I'd taped to her head not too long ago off her forehead. "You're such a loser," I mumbled, crumpling it.

However, Morgan didn't seem to hear me, because Anne walked in the door, hiding something behind her back. "Handcuffs!" she squealed, raising Mimi's handcuffs into the air triumphantly. _I thought Mimi only used those for work, _I thought to myself, _I'll have to ask Roger about that._

Morgan paled even more (if that was possible) and started whimpering. "Please Mark!" she begged, "I'll be good! Please don't do it!"

I just shook my head and said, "Nope, you deserve this."

"Where should we cuff her?" Anne asked.

"The couch?"

"Nah, she'd escape."

"The counter?"

"That might work."

"Oh!" I exclaimed, "I know! The pipes! Or even better, the fire escape!"

"The fire escape's a bit harsh, Mark," Anne muttered, "It's pretty cold out there. The pipes will have to do!"

About half an hour of kicking and two bruises later, Anne and I had gotten Morgan handcuffed to the pipes.

"This means war." She mumbled, eyes narrowed.

"Oh, it's on." Anne said plopping herself onto the couch. The three of us battled for a while before Morgan started to complain.

"Come on, I think this is punishment enough. Will you get me down now?"

"Fine," I muttered. Looking on the table where I had left the key, I picked it up and slipped it in my pocket. Grinning evilly I muttered a faint "Oops!"

"Oops?" Morgan asked, obviously not the reaction she had in mind, "OOPS! Don't tell me you lost the key!"

"Lost? No, it's not lost. I'm just not entirely sure where it is."

I winked at Anne, who was laughing at the entire situation. She caught the game and played along.

"I hate you Mark, I really really hate you." Morgan muttered, trying to keep from laughing along with Anne.

"Awww you don't mean that!"

"Like you don't really mean you lost the key?" she asked mischievously.

"Exactly!" I stated, "Hey Anne, wanna go for a walk?"

"No," Morgan whispered.

"Yes!" Anne said.

"Shit."

"Morgan, don't swear," I muttered, "We'll be back in a little bit."

"GET ME THE FUCK DOWN!" Morgan screeched.

"Not with that attitude!" I said before walking out the door with Anne.

As soon as we reached the street, Anne asked, "How long are we gonna leave her there?"

"Oh, not too long," I answered, "An hour, two at the most. She'll live."

**To be continued…**


	9. Chapter 9

**Don't own RENT. Enjoy!**

Anne laughed and we made our way to the park. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, I'd forgotten it at the loft, but I wasn't about to go get it. So I just enjoyed the scenery, not worrying about anything at all. 

Soon enough, Anne started shivering. Without saying a word, I slipped my jacket around her shoulders and she gave me a grateful look. "Thanks," she whispered.

"No problem."

We walked and talked for a while, and I soon lost track of the time. "Oh shit," I mumbled as we passed a clock.

"What?"

"We've been gone for over three hours! And it'll still take me a while to get home!" I said nervously, "Morgan's going to kill me!"

"Are you serious?" Anne muttered, "I'm late for something. I'll see you later then. Bye!"

"Bye."

She ran off and I headed towards the loft. I could only hope Morgan wouldn't be _too _mad. I mean, this _was_ Morgan we were talking about. I'm sure she'd found a way out of those cuffs by now. That, or thought of an ingenious scheme to get back at me. Or both. I gulped, growing even more nervous as I tried to imagine what my little sister had in store for me.

I soon arrived at the loft and ran up the stairs. As soon as I entered the room, I received a death glare from Morgan. "Took ya long enough," she spat.

"Sorry about that," I mumbled, "Here, lemme undo those." I reached for my coat pocket, but was greeted by a nasty surprise.

"Well, I'm waiting."

"Uh oh…"

"Uh oh?" Morgan said nervously, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"The keys, they were in my jacket pocket. And I put my jacket on Anne. And Anne ran off somewhere. She didn't even tell me where she was going."

I cautiously glanced at Morgan, who appeared dumbstruck. She had begun babbling nonsense, trying to comprehend the unfortunate news. "_What_ now!" she asked meekly.

"Okay," I said, trying to stay calm for Morgan's sake, "I'll run out and try to find Anne while you stay here. Not like you have any choice…"

"No," she said stoutly, "I refuse to be left alone!"

"But Morgan,"

"No!"

"Morgan, I'm going to go out there whether you like it or not. I don't want you chained up there all night. And your wrists are starting to look quite pale. I hope the circulation isn't cut…" I muttered.

My rambling was interrupted by Morgan's sharp voice. "Mark," she said, "If you leave me here, I will throw your camera out the window."

My eyes bulged as I saw here pick up my beloved camera with her free hand. "But Morgan,"

"I'm lonely. And this neighborhood scares me. While you were gone I heard lots of yelling downstairs, followed by gunshots. Someone started pounding on the door, but I didn't answer and they went away. I don't want to be here by myself." Morgan protested.

Sighing, I nodded in defeat and Morgan smiled. I made my way over to the phone and dialed the number to Mimi's hospital room. Roger picked up. "Hello?"

"Yeah. Hi Roger, it's Mark. Could you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Will you find Anne for me?"

"Well, she's here right now. Wanna talk to her?"

"That'd be great."

I heard shuffling and then a voice said, "Hi Mark, Anne here."

"Anne," I said, "You took my jacket. I wouldn't mind, but it has the handcuff key in it. Morgan is getting awfully pissed."

Anne laughed. "I'll be over soon. Sorry about that."

Before I could answer, she hung up. Sighing cheerfully, I hung up the phone and turned back to Morgan. "Can I have my camera back?"

"No."

"Fine. Be that way. I'll take your…um…er…your…"

"There's nothing to take," she said simply, "I'm not emotionally attached to inanimate objects, unlike a certain somebody."

I was about to say something when a knock on the door broke my concentration. I slid the door opened to find an out of breath Anne leaning against the wall for support. She held out my jacket with a weak arm.

"You ok?" I asked, trying to see her face under the tangled mass of her wind blown hair.

"Yeah… fine…. Just a little… out of breath… that's all." She panted. She saluted and headed back down the stairs, stumbling a little on her way down. I watched just to make sure she didn't fall and break something. Bringing my head back in the room, my smile was met by cold green eyes. I pulled out the key and her expression lightened, still not a smile though. I got the handcuffs off of her and she jumped off the table.

"Finally!" Morgan sighed, rubbing her wrist where the metal bracelet had been.

I tried giving her a smile again, but I was, once again, greeted by another death glare. "You are **_SO_** dead!" she whispered evilly.

I gulped as Morgan inched towards me, a maniacal look on her face. I closed my eyes, waiting for the worse. "You took my freedom, and now I'll take yours!" Morgan hissed in my ear. I was surprised and dumbstruck when I felt my glasses being lifted off my face.

"Morgan!" I called, extending my arms out in front of me so I didn't walk into anything, "This isn't funny! I need those! Really badly too! C'mon Morgan!"

"I'll be back in an hour or so, but I may lose track of time!" Morgan called. Then I heard the door slam shut.

**To be continued…**


	10. Chapter 10

I'm writing this with my friend, AND WE'VE VENTURED INTO NEW TERRITORY! (All the other chapters were already written. This is all new!) We don't own RENT. This story is postRENT. That's about all there is to say, other than I hope you enjoy reading this.

The next few hours were boring and lonely, considering I couldn't do anything without running into a wall. The door opened and I turned blindly toward the sound. There was a tall dark blob and a smaller blob in the door.

"Mark! What happened to your glasses?"

"Well, tell me who you are first, seeing as I have no fucking clue without my glasses." I muttered.

"Collins, man."

"Your mother."

"What?"

"Just kidding, it's Morgan."

"Morgan? As in the Morgan that stole my glasses and left me here blind for the past few hours?" I asked dumbly.

"Yeah, that Morgan." The little blob said.

"So _that's _what happened to your glasses," the big blob, Collins, mumbled.

"I think you've suffered enough," Morgan said, "Let me just get your glasses out…uh oh."

"Uh oh?" I whispered nervously.

"I can't seem to be able to find them Mark." Morgan said slyly.

"Oh Morgan Olivia Cohen, this is not funny. Give me back my glasses." I nearly yelled.

"Your initials are MOC?" Collins asked, "As in 'mock' almost. As in 'let's tease people'?"

I could tell Morgan was beaming. "Yup!"

"Go figure,"

"Yeah, while you go figure, can I please have my glasses back?" I asked. Morgan didn't move, "If you break them you are getting me a new pair, and another eye exam. And you're going to have to stay with me the entire time."

"Fine," Morgan sighed.

I felt her put my glasses back on my head. "Why are they so dirty?" I asked cleaning them on my shirt. Morgan shrugged,

"They were like that when I stole them."

I shrugged and sat back down on the couch. My camera lay idly in my lap. Morgan sat down next to me and grabbed my hand. "Wha-?"

"Marky," She started, her green eyes as big as saucers. "It's almost Halloween,"

"Uh oh..." Collins laughed

"No, I am not taking you trick-or-treating."

She snapped back to normal and raised an eyebrow at me. But as soon as it had come it had gone and she was trying to be cute again. "Can I have a Halloween party here? Pleaaaaaaseeeeeeee?"

I laughed and cranked up my camera. "Do that again," I said, searching for Morgan through the viewfinder.

"Do what?" She asked.

"That 'pleaaaaaaseeeeeeee' thing."

Morgan sighed. "Why?"

"Because it was funny and cute and I'm thinking of starting a new documentary."

"Really?" Collins asked, "On what?"

"Little sisters and their need to be obnoxious, annoying and totally adorable to get their way with everything." I answered.

Both Collins and Morgan laughed. "For that, I will." She answered.

"Good."

Her eyes once again grew large and she looked straight into the camera. "Marky, can I have a Halloween party here? Pleaaaaaaseeeeeeee?" she begged.

I started laughing. Gosh this would make such a great documentary. Morgan was the perfect 'guinea pig'. "Sure," I answered casually, "Just no junkies."

"But those are all my friends!" Morgan protested seriously. But after seeing the look on my face, she added, "I'm just joking Mark. Gosh, you need to chill! Your friends are my friends. I didn't really have any back home."

The room grew silent. I'm sure Collins was utterly confused. I mean, why wouldn't Morgan have friends? She was sweet and energetic and fun. Of course, she was also autistic, which counteracted everything else. "Hey Collins!" Morgan said, breaking the awkward silence, "Wanna come to my Halloween party?"

"Sure!" He said.

I sighed, "This isn't going to be a big old Halloween extravaganza is it?" I asked.

"Not unless you want it to be!" Morgan giggled. "Can I have Anne's phone number?"

Uh oh… "Uh… Why?" I asked

"To invite her! Duh!"

Reluctantly I pulled the paper out of my pocket and handed it to her. "Just don't scare her away please." I mumbled.

Laughing Morgan raced to the phone. "Hi, Anne?" I heard her say, "Yeah, its Morgan. Listen, I just wanted to invite you to my Halloween party. Well, duh, of course it's on Halloween! No, he won't take me. Yeah, I know, he really should. Maybe you and I can drag him out. Yeah, costume party. Great! See you later then!"

I raised my eyebrow as she walked back over. "Costume party?" I asked, "Who won't take you where? I'm confused…"

"Nothing to worry your head over," Morgan replied, "Except the costume part, because if you don't come with a costume…"

"Yeah, I don't even WANT to know what you'll do with me."

Collins laughed. "Costume party, ay?" he mumbled, "I think I have just the idea…" With that, he walked out the door.

"See Mark," Morgan said, shifting closer to me for warmth and laying her head on my shoulder, "Collins is getting ready for Halloween. He's excited. I'm sure he'll go all out, just like everyone else. But the one person I'd think getting all decked out for Halloween would be good for isn't going to do it."

"Who ever said I wasn't going to dress up?"

Morgan gave me a look that screamed, _Don't make me laugh Mark. You know perfectly well you're not going to. _"Whatever you say brother dearest."

I was about to answer, when Maureen and Joanne burst in the door. "I will not take it anymore!" Joanne was practically shouting, "I'm tired of it!"

"Come on Pookie," Maureen cooed, "It's okay."

I felt Morgan stiffen up beside me. She didn't like fighting any more than I did. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing!" both women said at once and Maureen continued, "We just wanted to say 'hi' and figured you'd pay more attention to us if we were fighting."

"This was all Maureen's doing," Joanne added, "She convinced me."

I laughed, shaking my head. That sure sounded like something Maureen would do. "Hey!" Morgan said loudly, making my ears ring a bit, "Do you guys wanna come to my Halloween party?"

"I'll have to check my schedule," Joanne muttered, but when she saw the disappointed look on Morgan's face, she added, "But I'll most likely be able to make it sweetie, don't worry!"

Morgan smiled widely and Maureen shrieked, "Halloween party? Costume?"

Morgan nodded. "Is there any other kind?"

Maureen jumped up and down and plopped down on the couch next to my little sister. "Oh this is going to be so much fun!" she nearly shouted, "Oh, Morgan, please let me help you plan! We'll make this the best Halloween party this town has ever seen!"

**To be continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

**Remember, we don't own RENT, nor do we rent it. This is a postRENT story that my friend is helping me write. Enjoy! (Gosh, it's a miracle we got this out! My friend had an essay, and it took her _forever_ to finish! But all's well that ends well!)**

I sighed, sitting down on the steps outside our loft door. I just needed time to think. The weeks had flown by quite fast. It was already Halloween, and Maureen and Morgan were setting up for the party on the other side of the door. I clutched my camera possessively, knowing that no matter what happened, it would always remain the same.

Morgan would be starting school in a few days…with Collins. Yes, Morgan had convinced me out of going to public school and now our good friend was going to home school her. It's not like it had been hard to persuade me; I didn't want my little sister going to a school filled with drugs and junkies. Anyway, now she wouldn't have to worry about people teasing her because she was autistic; Collins would never do something like that (at least seriously, but he still didn't know).

Mimi had been released from the hospital the other day and was excited about coming to Morgan's party. However, Roger was now overprotective of the poor girl. He was downstairs with her right now actually, helping her get ready for the party. Though Mimi was still pale and weak, I was just glad she was back to her usual self.

Despite all the good news, a little bad news forced its way into my mind. A week or so ago, Joanne had driven Morgan and I to our parents' funeral. I saw people I thought I'd never see again, like our older sister, Cindy. Well, I didn't actually _see_ Cindy. I saw her grave, but that's another story. I was swarmed by people I didn't even know (or remember) coming up and apologizing. For what? It's not like I cared that my parents were dead. But I took the 'beating' while Morgan just sat there, silently crying. She was obviously closer with Mom and Dad than I was.

Sighing, I got up and made my way into the loft. I was done thinking about stuff like that for today- I was ready to have fun!

"What are you supposed to be?" Maureen asked as I entered the room, not looking up from the orange balloon she was tying, then throwing it into a bag.

"I'm a starving artist." I answered, grabbing my coat (which I had forgotten) and heading out the door to continue filming. I felt something grab my wrist and throw me on the couch.

"No you're not." Morgan said, pulling a box of makeup off the counter.

"Oh no…"

Maureen pulled a skirt and a sweater out of her bag and the two of them looked at each other, smiling mischievously.

"No, no, no, no!"

Twenty minutes later I was standing in the middle of the room dressed in drag, complete with a wig and contacts. (Either Morgan felt bad about stealing my glasses before, or she wanted me to get the full effect of my "makeover" and see everyone's reaction)

I walked into the bathroom and looked up into the mirror. "FUCK!" I screamed, ripping the wig off my head and stripping down to my boxers, "NO! I am not going out in drag!"

"Come on, Marky!" Maureen begged.

"No." I said again, feeling my face heat up.

"What if we dress you up as something else?" Morgan asked.

"Depends..."

"On what?"

"Can I wear pants this time?"

Both girls laughed. "If you insist." Maureen said, probably rolling her eyes.

I cautiously walked out of the bathroom, holding the bundle of clothes (and the wig) in my hands. Maureen snatched the collection away and stuffed it back in her bag, sighing. I could tell they were both disappointed.

"Can I have my glasses back?" I asked.

"Nope," Morgan mumbled, a mischievous smile crossing her face, "They'd ruin your outfit…"

I had no idea what they were going to do to me, but Maureen seemed to figure out Morgan's plan immediately. "It'll have to do," she sighed, "I just still wish he would've stayed in drag."

I gulped. This could not, WOULD not, end well…

Half an hour later, I was led to the bathroom. "We're going in there with you," Maureen said, "We want to make sure you don't ruin it this time!"

"And don't touch your face, you'll smudge the makeup," Morgan mumbled.

"Don't touch your hair, you'll ruin the gel," Maureen added.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. The things I let them put me through…gosh I was an idiot. I looked in the mirror. Okay, I was a _Goth_ idiot. That's right, Goth. The entire ensemble.

Team M (Morgan and Maureen) had managed to find baggy black _pants_ (not a skirt, thank god) criss-crossed with silver chains and an oversized black sweatshirt with a skull on it. I looked in the mirror at a Mark Cohen that didn't seem to be me. With all of the eyeliner and black lipstick, my pale skin seemed ghostly white. As I lifted my hands to my face, I could smell the sharpie they'd decked my fingernails in. I ran my hands through my now spiked, black-streaked hair with awe. I had to admit, they were good…real good.

There was a knock on the door and the two girls ran out to answer it. I peeked out of the bathroom to see who it was.

"Hi girls." Collins said, sitting on the couch and taking up where Maureen left off, blowing up balloons.

"Hey, man." I said sitting next to him.

"Hey…Mark?"

The girls laughed, as Collins seemed to ponder my strange transformation. I smiled awkwardly and held my hand up so he could see the black nails too.

"He looks good!" He said after a moment of thought, "Good job girls!"

I made myself a cup of tea and sat by the window, watching the sun set. Just half an hour till the party. Just three more hours till I could get this shit off of my face.

I looked up from my tea, suddenly realizing something. "Hey!" I nearly yelled, staring at Team M, "How come you two aren't dressed up?"

They both sighed. "Chill Mark," Morgan said, "We're getting changed when we're done getting ready."

"Which is now." Maureen added.

I sighed as the two girls made their way to the bathroom, large bags in hand. Collins laughed. "Two peas in a pod," he mumbled.

"Most unfortunately," I answered, "I thought one Maureen was bad enough!"

"I heard that!" Maureen called from the bathroom, "Don't make us dress you up in drag again…and make you stay in it all night!"

I rolled my eyes and shuttered, instantly shutting up. Collins laughed heartily. "They dressed you up in _drag_?" he muttered, "I would've paid to see that."

"Haha. Very funny." I said dryly, carefully sipping my tea. I didn't mind in the least about smudging my lipstick, but if I did, another hour of 'touchup' would follow, and I sure as hell didn't want to go through THAT again.

"Why do you let them push you around?" Collins suddenly asked.

"What?"

"You look so miserable in your sexy little outfit. Why do you do that to yourself?"

I shrugged. "I dunno," I answered softly.

Collins just chuckled. "If getting pushed around means you getting dressed up in drag and Goth and who knows what else, you should let them do it more often."

"Go to hell," I muttered.

"Party time!" Maureen called stepping out of the bathroom in black leather short-shorts and a matching leather halter-top. She had her hair back in a black headband with black cat ears.

"You do know that we don't have heat, right?" I asked pointing to her bare limbs.

She rolled her eyes at me, "I've gotten used to it. I lived here remember?"

"Oh yeah…"

Morgan stepped out of the bathroom and cleared her throat. Standing with a huge grin on her face she opened her arms wide and proclaimed: "Hello, I am Mark Cohen and I am cuter than your puppy."

Her hair was up in a tight bun at the back of her head, she was wearing all my cloths, including my scarf and jacket. She had taken the frames out of an old pair of wire-rimed glasses, and was grinning ear to ear.

I almost snorted out my tea. "Me?" I asked, "You're being me for Halloween?"

Morgan smiled and nodded. Collins walked over and spun her around.

"Well I have to say, she does make a good you."

I rolled my eyes and took to staring out the window again. There was a knock on the door and someone answered it.

"Mark, you seem to have shrunk a few inches!"

Roger and Mimi walked in the door, laughing and still talking to 'Mark'. But when they saw me, they stopped abruptly. "But…but…" Roger stuttered, turning from Morgan to me and then back, "_TWO_ Marks!"

Morgan laughed. "You wish," she mumbled, "Nah, just one Mark. Maureen and I decided to dress the real Mark up a bit."

Roger and Mimi laughed. "I like it," Mimi said, "You look good Mark. It works for you. Of course, I still lov- erm- enjoy the company of regular, classic Mark."

Everyone laughed, including me. "So," I asked, surveying my roommate and his girlfriend's not so extravagant costumes, "What are you guys supposed to be?"

Roger pulled up the hood of his black sweatshirt, revealing two red devil horns taped to the top. "Your worst nightmare!" he whispered harshly, trying not to break down laughing.

I turned to Mimi, who was wearing a tattered, black and white striped miniskirt and tank top. "And you?"

"An inmate…from the hotel of love."

Roger picked her up and swung Mimi's frail body around. "And I've come for your soul!"

Mimi's giggling filled the room. "Stop it!" she shrieked and Roger put her down, "Hey Collins, what are you?"

Collins pulled out a big pair of black sunglasses and put his hands on his hips. "A hit man," he said coolly.

"Hello?" A muffled voice asked form behind the door, "Someone want to open the door? Please?"

Morgan opened the door to reveal Anne. She was wearing all white and had a pair of angel wings strapped to her shoulders. Her makeup was dramatic blend of whites and gold's to complement her costume as well as her looks.

"Thanks," she whispered, blushing as everyone's eyes fell onto her. "Its only me, you can go back to talking now." She mumbled, keeping her eyes on the ground.

"Anne!" Morgan called, "Your makeup is beautiful!"

Anne mumbled an inaudible 'thank you' before sitting down next to me on the couch as Collins got up, pulling bottle after bottle of beer out of his big, hit man jacket. I surveyed the room. All of my best friends were there, and we had 'unlimited access' to beer. This was going to be one crazy night…

**To be continued...**


	12. Chapter 12

**Sorry this took so long! A lot of stuff has been going on, and it was somewhat hard to write this chapter. Anyway, I hope you guys like it! Disclaimer: we don't own RENT.**

"Ever played big liar?" Anne asked. We had finally all sat down to talk, thus becoming increasingly bored with our company.

"What is it?" Maureen asked, holding onto my wrist to keep me from rubbing my very dry eyes and smudging my eyeliner.

"It's a drinking game," Everyone groaned but Anne continued, "You tell two stories, one true and one false, then everyone guesses. Whoever guesses wrong has to drink a penalty sip of beer."

"Me first!" called Maureen sitting up so she could see everyone's face. "So, story number one. One night I was walking through the ally to get home to my Pookie!" she pinched my cheek when she said this, than went back to her story. "And then all of a sudden a little boy came out of the shadows and said to me 'there's something wrong!' and with that he left. So I ignored it. As I made my way toward Marky-poo's apartment, I found the poor little guy beaten and left for dead on the street corner! Thankfully I found the guy and beat 'em into a bloody pulp."

I blushed, remembering the last bit. That was probably the most embarrassingly great time I had while dating Maureen.

"Story two: I met Joanne at a strip club."

We all looked at Joanne who looked at Maureen in utter confusion.

"Well, you were drunk, so you wouldn't remember! Anne you guess first since you were the one who brought up this game"

Anne smiled taking her unopened bottle of beer off the table and cupping her hands around it. "Judging by Joanne's expression, and the fact that Mark blushed after the first one. I have to say the first story is true."

Each person stated their 'answer'. Anne, Joanne, Roger and I thought the first one was true. Mimi and Collins thought the second was the true one.

"So," I asked, "Which is the true one?"

"The first one." Maureen said simply.

As each person took their penalty drink, Morgan came and sat down on my lap. "Can I play?" she asked hopefully.

"No." I said, shooting down her request.

"Why not?"

"Because you're too young to drink beer."

"I could have penalty coffee."

"And then I'd have to deal with you bouncing off the walls all night."

"Penalty juice?"

I sighed. "Okay," I said reluctantly.

"Alright Morgan," Maureen said, "You go next."

"Okay…" she started, "Story one. When I was about twelve years old, I told Mark that mom and dad were letting me come visit (even though they weren't because they were still mad at him for leaving me alone in the park). So while they went out of town, I stole their car, drove to New York and spent a few days with Mark. I left so abruptly because the neighbors realized the car was gone and called the cops, so I drove back. No one ever caught me in the act. Story two. When I was in second grade a kid called me stupid, so I beat him up and got suspended for a week."

Roger, Collins, Maureen and Mimi thought story one was true. Joanne, Anne and I thought the second story was the real one. Needless to say, I still hadn't had one sip of penalty beer all night.

Next it was Joanne's turn. "Story one. I decided to become a lawyer when I was six. I'd managed to convince my teacher to let us have five more minutes of coloring time…just by using my words. Since then, I liked the power of being able to change peoples' minds and help others. Story two. My first job was at Hooter's."

_Everyone_ chose story one, and everyone had a sip of penalty beer (except Morgan, of course, who had penalty juice).

"Are you serious?" Collins asked, slurring his words ever so slightly.

Joanne blushed. "Yes," she whispered, "Anyway Collins, it's your turn."

"Alright. Story one. The real reason I spend months and months away from here is because I have a secret family living near the university. Two kids, a dog, a pool, the whole shebang. Story two. I have the hots for Mark in his sexy little Goth outfit."

I blushed and everyone laughed. I felt the beer burn my throat as I took a sip. Too bad Collins didn't have a secret family.

"All right" I said, trying my hardest not to reach up and rub all the eyeliner off my eyelids, "So, when I was little I used to have nightmares about living in this part of New York. I'd wake up promising myself that id never move here. Eh… I was never really all that good at keeping the promises I made to my self." Everyone laughed. I shrugged and started my second story. "And uh… Oh I know! I started masturbating in the womb."

Everyone laughed as Morgan just looked at me, jaw hanging and green eyes held wide in shock, obviously wishing she had a different brother. I just smiled and shrugged again. It took a while for everyone to stop making smart-ass comments about my second story. Everyone but Anne guessed the second story was true (everyone including Morgan, surprisingly). And everyone but Anne had to drink.

We all looked at Anne; obviously everyone was thinking the same thing as me. Since she was an artist, we were all expecting some extravagant story.

"Me?" she asked, looking into all the eyes focused on her, She blushed and started. Well… When I was sixteen I met a really sweet boy named Daniel Dumott Schunard. We were best friends and he helped me out of a slight phase and I became the little social butterfly that I am now! But something happened and we stopped talking."

"You knew Angel?" Collins asked staring wide-eyed at the young brunette.

"Well, if I answered than there would be no point to me telling you that would there?" She took a deep breath and started my second story. "When I was young, about nine, I had to watch my parents die slowly when a thief came in our home and tried to kidnap me and make me into a whore. It was really quite gruesome."

It was quiet, Anne screwed up her face in what seemed like half a smile, but she hid her face in her hands and chocked out a muffled "Go on! Guess!"

Nothing.

Anne lifted her head and gave us all a "you're SO pathetic" look.

"Ok, Ok" she said, trying to keep from laughing, "The first ones true! My parents are still alive… somewhere."

"You have one twisted scene of humor." Joanne said, smiling as Anne giggled.

"That's just me!" She giggled, "And if you have seen this side of me, you know I like you."

As the night passed on, we learned that Roger used to play classical music…until someone double dared him that he couldn't play rock. Boy were they wrong! We also found out that Mimi seriously considered becoming a nun.

Soon enough, it was well past midnight and everyone was ready to go home. "Great party!" Collins said, disappearing out the door to go who-knows-where.

Everyone left, except Roger, Morgan, Anne and me. "Hey Roger," Morgan said, "Why don't we go check on Mimi."

Roger nodded his head and followed her out the door. As soon as they were gone, both Anne and I collapsed on the couch exhausted. "That is the last time I let Morgan have any party of any kind under this roof," I grumbled.

"Don't be so hard," Anne said, "You had fun. Admit it."

"Alright. I admit it."

I looked out the window silently. The full moon was casting shadows around the room. I looked at Anne, who seemed to be captivated by it. Its resonating light made her seem to glow, with her wings and makeup she really did look like an angel. "Beautiful…" I whispered, although I wasn't speaking only about the moon.

"Yeah." Anne whispered, still looking out the window

She turned to me and we seemed to become lost in each other's eyes. Without thinking I slipped my hand around hers. Her ice-cold hands felt nice on my heated palm. My heart quickened as she looked down to see what I had done but when she looked back at me, she seemed to have a whole other emotion in her eyes. I wasn't made to make the first move, but someone had to do it. I grazed the side of her face with my hand, slowly leaning in toward her like I had seen them do in all those sappy movies Maureen made me watch. I tried to make this the most romantic as I could, although, a broken couch with beer bottles strewn about isn't really the best example of romantic. I closed my eyes and waited… A sound from behind the door made me snap back to reality and look at the door

"Aw-" and then a muffled whine.

I sighed, got up and opened the door. Roger and Morgan fell forward and landed in a heap at my feet. "Were you watching us?" I asked suspiciously.

Morgan started nodding her head 'yes' vigorously, but Roger put his hand on her head to make her stop. "No." he said innocently, wiping what appeared to be spit off his hand. He must have put his hand over Morgan's mouth, which created that whine.

I rolled my eyes and Anne approached me. "I didn't realize how late it was. I have to go." She said and then exited the loft.

**To be continued…**


	13. Chapter 13

**I'm sorry this chapter is so short, but it's better than nothing, and it seemed like a good place to leave off. This chapter isn't terribly exciting, but the next chapter is. Disclaimer: I own nothing. Hope you enjoy it!**

I turned around and glared at Roger and Morgan, who were sheepishly looking at the floor.

"Morgan," I said angrily, "Bed. Now!"

She nodded and walked into the bathroom to change. I glowered at Roger. "Who's idea was it?"

"Morgan's," he whispered.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Should've known better. Oh well."

Roger laughed lightly, but I didn't have the heart to join in. Why was I acting so mean and angry? My roommate seemed to sense my uneasiness. "Sorry Mark," he said, his laughter subsiding.

I just sighed and turned towards the bathroom, where Morgan was just exiting, her costume in hand. She was giving me a look. "Is that really what I am Mark?" she asked, leaning against the doorway, "A troublesome nuisance? Am I that predictable? Just because you'd never have fun or do anything like that doesn't mean you can subtly badmouth me about it."

I sighed. Suddenly, I hated the world in that typical teenager way. Stupid Morgan. Stupid autism. Stupid Roger. Stupid life. Stupid…EVERYTHING! But no, I couldn't let them know that. I had to stay calm. Put up that facade.

"You haven't taken your pills yet," I mumbled, reaching into my jacket pocket for the orange bottle, "Take them and then go to bed."

Morgan rolled her eyes but did as I said, if only to make me happy. She didn't care in the least about those damn pills, yet my very existence seemed to hinge on them. If she didn't take them, Morgan wouldn't flip…I would.

As Morgan flopped down on the couch…er…_bed_, I dashed into the bathroom to wash the shit off my face. Morgan and Maureen- a pair I hoped wouldn't become too close. Of course, I think they already had, and I feared strongly for my well being and mental health. It was most definitely a friendship made in hell.

I woke up to the sound of the phone ringing. When had I gone to bed anyway? I remained still and listened to the message.

"Speeeeeeak."

"Hey Mark, it's Anne. Sorry I walked out on you last night. The whole scene just got awkward with Roger and Morgan there. Can I make it up to you? Please? Call me back."

The line went dead and I rolled over, burying my head in my pillow and snuggled under the blanket. I didn't want to get out of bed, or even leave the loft. This must have been how Roger felt when April killed herself, except more depressed.

Something crunched beneath my head. Groaning, I pulled a note out from beneath my pillow. Putting on my glasses, I read.

_Hey Mark, we're sorry about last night, so we came up with a plan to make it all better…a day without having to worry about Morgan. She's taken her pills and we'll be hanging out in the city until dinner. We'll bring some stuff home for you. Mimi's with Maureen and Joanne, so you won't have to worry about her and Collins is working. Enjoy your 'day off'!_

_-Roger and Morgan_

I smiled and laid back down. A day off, how nice. As long as I could remember, I'd been taking care of _somebody_, first Morgan, and then Roger, Collins and whoever it might be shoving their way into my life. Yes, a day off would be nice.

I glanced at the clock, which read 11:26. By now I'd usually be out, filming and whatnot. But not today! I brought my legs to my chest and fell into a deep sleep, not worrying about a thing for the first time in what seemed to be forever.

"Speeeeeeak."

"Hi, it's Anne again. Mark, are you mad at me? You haven't picked up the phone all day. Please, I want to meet up with you again…alone this time. Call me back."

All day? Surely it hadn't been 'all day'. I glanced at the clock. 6:56. Okay, it _had_ been all day. I grinned sheepishly. I hadn't slept that well in years, and I felt a little guilty.

I groaned and got out of bed, stiff from lying down for so long. I stretched and grabbed a poptart, stuffing it in my mouth, the sweet taste instantly pulling me awake. Rubbing my eyes, I picked up my glasses and began fiddling with them, seeing as I had nothing better to do while I ate.

When I was finished, I got up and called Anne.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Anne, it's me, Mark."

"Oh, hi Mark! Where have you been all day? I must have called you at least five times."

I blushed. "Sleeping. Morgan and Roger gave me the day off."

"That's sweet. Hey, you want to meet me at the park in half an hour? The bench we were at the other day?"

"Sure. Sounds great. See you in a few. Bye."

"Bye."

I hung up the phone and sat down on the couch. Had I just agreed to…a date? I shrugged and got dressed before grabbing my camera and running out the door to meet Anne.

**To be continued…**


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry for the long wait and I'm sorry it's so short, but I wanted to get it out. Anyway, this is a very important chapter, so it kinda makes up for the shortness. I don't own RENT and I really hope you like this!**

I walked into the park, and found Anne already there and waiting for me. She was curled up and hugging her body for warmth. She was pale and looked completely miserable, but she still smiled when she saw me.

"Hey there stranger." She whispered.

She watched me as I sat down next to her and pulled my camera onto my lap. She coughed, but smiled reassuringly when I asked if she was ok.

"Sorry." She whispered

"For what?"

"For last night…" She paused, looking up in thought. "Its not that I don't-"

I cut her off, "It's ok, it was just… late! Yeah, that's all." I faked a smile to match hers.

She sighed, "But I really, really like you," She whispered, then laughed, "I sound like a catholic school girl!"

"I think you're adorable." I said, once again looking deep into her bright blue eyes, although they were slightly glazed over that day. She smiled and buried her head into my shoulder.

"I'd kiss you, but I don't want to get you sick." Said Anne's muffled voice. She yawned. The sun had since set, and the dark air was steadily growing colder, so I pulled her quivering body close to mine and tried to keep her warm.

"I'll take you in and nurse you back to health." I said, wrapping my arms around her. She put up a halfhearted fight.

"But I want to go home," she mumbled, sneezing and leaning heavily against me. She obviously felt like shit.

"If you go home I can't take care of you!" I laughed.

"Why not?" She sniffed.

"Morgan," was all I had to say.

She sighed in defeat. "Fine, but you're carrying me."

Anne ended up falling asleep on the way to the flat, which gave me time to think. Anne called me. She came out while she was sick to make sure I wasn't mad about her running away from my kiss. She agreed to come home with me and let me help her get better. And she was sleeping in my arms. Does that mean we're an official couple?

With much struggling and putting my body in positions I thought it would never be in, I managed to open the loft door without waking Anne up. I gently placed her on the couch and smiled before getting out something called 'ramen noodles'. I'd heard of it before, but Morgan must have bought it with the money Mom and Dad left her. I read the directions and filled up the cup with hot water.

While it sat (three minutes according to the instructions) I went to check up on Anne. She was still sleeping soundly, clutching at the blanket I'd dug out of the closet. A small smile crossed my face. She was so cute when she was sleeping, but unlike Morgan, she stayed like that.

Morgan. Gosh, she'd be mad if she knew I'd given up her 'bed'. I had a feeling Anne might be staying here all night, so where would my sister sleep? On the floor? No, that would probably be me, and Morgan would comfortably sleep in my bed. Fucking sisters. Why must they always get their way…just by being cute?

Soon enough (three minutes to be exact) the ramen was done and I carefully picked up both cups and two spoons before walking over to Anne, who was beginning to wake up.

"Hi sleepy," I said softly, smiling and offering her a cup of ramen.

"Good day Mr. Sandman," she mumbled, taking the soup.

We sat in a comfortable silence, eating the noodles. Soon, Anne began to slurp them up loudly and greedily. "My mom never let me do it," she explained after seeing the weird look on my face, "So I decided to do it now."

I laughed and a ramen-slurping contest broke out. I won nearly every time, having slurped up noodles for the past few years. Suddenly, we had a new idea- slurp the noodles off the other person's fork. Sure, Anne was sick, but that was okay. Being sick never hurt anyone. And I was AIDS-less, so I had a nice, healthy immune system.

Soon enough, we were both slurping up a noodle…and it was the same one. We were just inches apart and our blue eyes connected. A strange force built between us. This felt so…right. I slowly started to finish the noodle, pulling our faces closer and closer until our lips met…at the same time I heard the door to the loft open.

Yet, unlike last time, she didn't pull away. (Not that I minded.) Maybe I had just imagined it. Yet, I knew I hadn't when I heard a Morgan-sounding voice say, "Awwww…wait, this means Mark has a girlfriend. OH MY GOSH! MARK HAS A GIRLFRIEND! THIS IS AWESOME!"

Anne and I pulled apart and faced Morgan and Roger. Morgan looked dumbstruck, yet happy, and Roger was smiling widely. "About time," he mumbled.

I laughed. "Hey!" I said playfully, "I resent that! I've had plenty of girlfriends."

"Mark, trying to win back a girl who didn't want you isn't considered having a girlfriend. It's considered sad and pathetic on your part." Roger said.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say Roger, but I wasn't trying to win her back."

"Of course you weren't."

I was about to respond to Roger's comment when I heard light snoring behind me. Sure enough, Anne had fallen asleep. Poor thing, she was so sick.

Morgan sighed. "Thanks Mark," she said sarcastically, "I just _love_ sleeping on the floor. So just for that, you get no Chinese."

Chinese? That's when I noticed the bag in Morgan's arms. They _did_ say they were going to bring me back dinner. "Ah, come on Morgan. You can sleep in my bed and _I'll_ sleep on the floor."

"Damn right you'll sleep on the floor," Morgan said, tossing me the bag of food, "If anyone's gonna be sleeping uncomfortably, it's you."

"Don't swear. Anyway, maybe I'll just sleep on the couch."

"Wow Mark," Roger said, "You two have just been together for not even a day and you're already trying to get into bed with her? You must be really desperate. When was the last time you were laid?"

Morgan started laughing hysterically and Roger smirked. I rolled my eyes. "No. More like her head on my lap like I did the other day with Morgan. Jesus, perverted much Roger?"

**To be continued…**


	15. Chapter 15

**Alright, I'm sorry for the shortness/how long it took. Um…..ya, the usual junk. I don't own RENT, my friend is helping me write this. Enjoy!**

I woke up with Anne in my arms. She felt cooler than she did earlier today; I hoped that was a good sign. I thought about getting up, but I didn't. For some reason, no matter how uncomfortable the position I was in was, I didn't want to be anywhere but here.

"Eeeeeee! You two are so cute!"

…And now I wanted to be someplace else. Morgan came bounding behind the couch. She squealed and a huge smile split her face.

"Just be glad I don't have a camera with me."

Anne sat up and yawned, "What time is it?" She asked groggily. She flopped back into my arms.

"8:30" Morgan said, checking her watch and tapping it a few times to see if it was still working. (Although you'd think you be able to tell anyways, since it's a digital and all.)

"Wake me up in a few hours…" She moaned, curling up in my lap like my old cat used to.

I smiled and gently stroked Anne's hair as she slept. Suddenly, a big, black monstrosity was shoved in my face.

"November second, 1991. Mark has had a girlfriend for about twelve hours now. Got anything to say about it?" Morgan asked, cranking up my camera.

I laughed softly. "I've never been happier!"

Roger walked into the room smirking. "'_Never been happier_.'" He mocked, "You've said that so many times, it's lost all meaning."

"Yeah!" Morgan insisted, turning back to me with my camera, "Tell us something useful. Something you'll cherish in five years. Heck, in five years, we all may be dead."

I felt myself pale. God, I really didn't want to think about that. "Alright," I said, trying not to seem to jittery about Morgan's previous comment, "I really love Anne. I can only hope she won't leave me for another woman. I don't think I could handle that again."

Both people laughed, and Anne shifted on the couch. "Quiet!" I shushed.

My sister turned to Roger. "And now that we've heard Mark's side of the story, what does the roommate think of the new girlfriend?"

"Ah, she's cool. And she makes Mark happy. A bonus," Roger muttered, snatching the camera from Morgan, "And what does the little sister think?"

"I like Anne. She's nice. I can only hope Mark doesn't start ignoring me, or he shall feel my wrath!"

We all laughed. "Don't worry," I mumbled, "It's impossible to ignore you."

A long silence followed, but no one seemed to care. Roger dug out his guitar and started plucking random notes that sounded like the song he wrote, 'Your Eyes'. Morgan put my camera away and was twiddling her thumbs.

"Mark," she said, looking up from her game of one-person thumb war, "Why'd you leave home? And do you really hate me like you said before?"

Roger stopped plucking abruptly and looked at me. I opened and closed my mouth, probably appearing like a fish. I didn't know what to say. "I…um…"

"What time is it?" Anne asked from my lap, startling us all.

"Uh… about one." Morgan replied.

Anne stood up and yawned. She threw her tangled hair into a messy bun, and gave me a quick peck on the lips.

"I'm going home, my kitty is probably wondering where her food is." She said.

"You have a cat?" Morgan asked taking up Anne's spot on my lap.

"Yeah, Kiki" she said, "And she gets all the food. I don't think I've had a full meal since you took me to the Life."

"No wonder that weakling could carry you." Roger mused, and took up playing a little melody on his guitar. I really couldn't argue with him, I was pretty damn weak, that's what I got for being an artist.

"Call me later, Mark!" Anne called from the door, I waved goodbye and she was gone. Morgan's smile disappeared as she turned to me.

"Well?" She asked.

"Well what?" I asked nervously.

"Oh, don't be an ass Mark, you know perfectly well what." She said bluntly.

"Don't swear," I said, receiving a death glare.

"Mark," Morgan said.

"I plead the fifth."

"The what?" Roger asked.

"The fifth. The Fifth Amendment. That means I don't have to talk." I answered.

"Mark," Morgan said, a pitch of desperation in her voice, "Spill."

"I told you. I plead the fifth."

"Mark?"

"Yeah?"

"You know the saying 'silence is golden'?"

"Yeah."

"In this case, silence is NOT golden. It's platinum…at best!"

"I'm still not saying a word."

Morgan's eyes narrowed and she gave me a death glare before walking out the door.

"Aren't you gonna go after her?" Roger asked, putting down his guitar.

"I dunno." I said cruelly, "I'm mad at her. Who the hell does she think she is anyway? I don't have to answer her. I'm older and have authority. Morgan needs to learn that she isn't always going to get her way and someone isn't always going to chase after her to make sure she's okay."

"Yeah, Mark," Roger said, "Not trying to burst your bubble, but newsflash. We're in Alphabet City, not Scarsdale. Leave a cute little autistic girl out there for to long and you've got some real shit to deal with. She's your sister, and I know you'd regret it if anything happened to her. Like, oh, DRUGS, or, let's see, AIDS, or, um, MUGGED, or, my personal favorite, RAPE. Yeah, might want to think about that."

I hated to admit it, but Roger was right. I would hate myself if anything ever happened to Morgan. Sighing, I pulled on my jacket and walked out the door. "I'll be back later."

**To be continued…**


	16. Chapter 16

**This is really short, but I wanted to post a new chapter for each story and my friend whom I'm writing this with and I couldn't think of any new ideas, so we got this. Enjoy!**

Where to look, where to look? I had no idea where to start. The park maybe? That seemed to be her favorite spot. Clutching my jacket closer, I wove my way through the crowds towards the park.

"Morgan?" I called, "Morgan? Where are you?"

No answer.

I sighed, frustrated, as snowflakes began to fall. She always chose the worst time to run away. A thought made me freeze. I racked my brain to try and remember if Morgan had taken her jacket. God, I sure hope she did.

I continued walking, not really paying attention to my surroundings. It was like I wasn't even looking anymore. Yet, I was, if that made any sense. I had to find her, I just had to.

Soon enough, the sun began to set. Wait, what? Set? It'd been only one when I last checked.

"Excuse me," I said to a nearby person, "Do you know what time it is?"

"About seven thirty." They answered before running off.

"Seven thirty," I whispered to myself, "That's…six and a half hours. I can't believe it's taking me so long to find something this important."

"Mark?" I heard someone say.

"Morgan?" I asked excitedly.

"Not quite," Anne answered, "God Mark, you're frozen. C'mon, I'm taking you back to my place."

"No," I protested, "I have to find Morgan."

"Mark," she replied, "I don't care if you were on your way to a contest to win a million dollars. You look like a sunken, frozen, nearly dead rat and you're coming back to my place whether you like it or not!"

I sighed in defeat. "Fine." I muttered.

Anne took my arm and dragged me through the park, but I didn't really pay attention to where we were going because a wave of exhaustion came over me. It took a lot of will power to not give up and just lay down right there and fall asleep.

Soon enough though, we reached Anne's apartment. I followed her up the stairs, now fully awake. She gently shoved me onto the couch and went into the kitchen to get something.

"Wait here." She instructed.

I nodded and she carefully placed her cat, I think Kiki, on my lap. I began petting it and it purred contently, curling up and quickly falling asleep. I smiled, immediately liking the kitty. It sat on my lap and stayed there, content and happy. Why couldn't Morgan be like that? Why couldn't she just stay where I could keep an eye on her without complaining?

Anne came back into the room, carrying two mugs, steam floating to the ceiling.

"Tea or hot chocolate?"

I'd usually take tea, but I wanted something sugary. "Hot chocolate please."

The warm liquid quickly defrosted my frozen body and lulled me to sleep.


End file.
